


A Winter Engagement

by an_aphorism



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Accidental Engagement, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Love Confessions, M/M, Mutual Pining, New Year's Kiss, Post-War, Sharing a Bed, Snowball Fight, but none of that S8 nonsense, winter vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-18 23:00:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28874979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/an_aphorism/pseuds/an_aphorism
Summary: After Shiro complains that his parents will try and set him up on a date if he goes home alone for the holidays, Keith volunteers to be his fake boyfriend.(for Sheithmark 2021)
Relationships: Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 33
Kudos: 265
Collections: Sheithmark 2021





	A Winter Engagement

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the trope bingo line: fake dating, flirtatious snowball fight, broken engagement, dog.

Keith comes in just as Shiro collapses down onto the couch, dropping his datapad carelessly off the edge of the sofa and onto the floor. He can’t stand to look at the message for a moment longer. He was so looking forward to winter break, to some time off and some lazing about, and now—

“What’s up?” Keith asks.

Shiro groans. He gestures vaguely at the datapad. While his eyes are closed, Shiro feels the shift in air as Keith moves, and then his legs are lifted as Keith takes a seat on the couch.

“Oh,” Keith says after presumably rescuing the datapad and reading over the message. “Your parents want to see you for the holidays.” Shiro groans again. “I thought you had been looking forward to seeing them? Just the other day you were saying you missed them.”

“I do!” Shiro opens his eyes to see Keith at the other end of the couch, Shiro’s feet in his lap. “It’s just that my Mom’s been trying to set me up.” At Keith’s eyebrow raise, Shiro sighs. “On dates. And I just know if I go that she’ll miraculously produce some ‘nice man’ and then we will both suffer through a very awkward romantic holiday and _ugh_. I do want to see them, it’s been so long and I miss them, but every time we talk now they’re asking about dating and reminding me of my cousins who got married years ago and, _now that I’m healthy I should really try and settle down_.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah, hence the _ugh_.”

“That sucks,” Keith says.

“Uh huh.”

“Why don’t you just say you’re dating someone, get them off your back for a while?”

Shiro props himself up on his elbows at that. “That’s a slippery slope Keith, my mom is uh, kinda intense. She’d want to know everything about who I was dating and she’d want me to bring them for the holidays.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. I can fly a magical space cat with the best of them, but thinking up an imaginary boyfriend on the fly is not one of my strengths.”

Keith laughs at that and Shiro grins at him. It’s been great to see more and more of Keith’s smiles since the war ended. Nice in general to see him settle into peacetime. Every time Shiro sees a bit of it, it makes him warm down to the bottom of his stomach. It makes him believe it was all truly worth it.

“Soooo what’re you going to do then?”

Shiro flops back down. “Die?”

Immediately he gets a pillow to the face and a scandalized, _Shiro!_

“I kid, I kid!”

“Not funny you idiot,” Keith says, although he looks fond.

“Not even a little?” Shiro presses his toes into Keith’s belly and gets an aborted laugh and a swat.

“No.”

Shiro looks up at the ceiling, seriously pondering the question. “I’m going to go. I— they’re going to the winter cabins and I haven’t been since… gosh before Kerberos training. It was nice, the cabins. Reminds me of when I was a kid. Would be nice to go and see my parents and have the time off. I guess I’ll just… deal with whatever that comes with.”

“Shiro, you shouldn’t have to.”

“It’s… fine. Everyone in my family has had to run the gauntlet, guess it’s my turn.”

They sit in silence for a few moments, and Shiro’s mind begins to drift to other things. It’s a Friday evening and Shiro knows Keith hasn’t eaten. They should get some food, start the weekend off right. Frankly if he hadn’t gotten so distracted by the message from his mother he would have already ordered something for them. Keith shows up on Fridays like clockwork, and it’s become a ritual for them to hang out and decompress at the end of the week.

“Hey, what if you brought me,” Keith says, jarring Shiro out of his food planning.

Shiro blinks at him. “Brought you?”

“To your family,” Keith looks away, gesturing vaguely. “You could just tell your mom we’re dating or something. Then if she quizzes you, you know everything about me, you wouldn’t have to make anything up. And uh, it’s not like I have plans, would be cool to go someplace else.”

“What?” Shiro sits up quickly, moving his feet off Keith’s lap. His heart has spiked just hearing _tell your mom we’re dating_. That’s… dangerous. Dangerous even in the fictional sense. There had been a lot of tension between them during the war. A lot of _something_ between him and Keith, but it had never come to anything. In the months they’ve been back it’s been strictly friendship. 

Which Shiro is pretty certain is the only thing Keith wants from him. And that’s fine. _Good!_ Shiro can put whatever those feelings are to bed and just be friends. Keith is the most amazing man he’s ever known, and Shiro would do anything to keep him in his life. Friends has been and will always be good enough.

He just absolutely cannot afford to let his heart think that there’s an opportunity for more.

“I mean I know I’m not like, prime boyfriend material—“

“What?” Shiro frowns, caught off guard by this segue. “Keith, that’s not true. Anyone would be proud to have you as their boyfriend.” The words get out before he’s vetted them, and Shiro almost cringes. They’re true of course, but maybe a little too close to the line.

“O-oh?”

“Yeah,” Shiro says at once, firmly. “My parents would love you, I know they would.”

“Oh.” Keith’s still not looking at him, but his shoulders have dropped a little. Shiro positively aches to lean over and gather him up suddenly. “So uh, what do you think? Could be fun, kind of like an undercover mission.”

At this Keith does meet his eyes, and the look is a little sly. This is more comfortable ground, a challenge to be undertaken between the two of them.

“Are you sure? I did say awkward romantic holiday. I meant that, my mom will make it weird.”

Shiro doesn’t necessarily want to offer the out, but he knows he should. He doesn’t want Keith to feel like this is something Keith has to do because Shiro complained.

He tries to keep his expression open but mild despite how his insides feel. The prospect of Keith coming, of Keith being his _boyfriend_ has his heart pounding. Even if it’s a fake romance, the mere idea is enough to send his thoughts wandering to areas he shouldn’t be even entertaining.

Truly Shiro should just be focused on the reality of him and Keith hanging out at his parents as _friends_. They always have a good time, even in awkward alien meetings and silly space shenanigans, so this will just be more of the same. It will be nice to have Keith there, to share this thing with him.

“Yeah,” Keith says. “Besides, it’s snowy at these cabins, yeah?” Shiro nods. “Great, I’ve never seen snow, but always wanted to.”

“You’ve never seen snow?”

“Not Earth snow. Desert all the way for me.” Keith reaches over and picks up the datapad. He hands it to Shiro. “Now order us some food and then we can come up with our cover story. Sound good?”

They’re both smiling at each other, and Shiro hopes he’s not visibly red despite how warm his insides are. It sounds good. All of it suddenly sounds very, very good.

And he hopes for his heart’s sake that it’s not a mistake.

##

The plan involves several phone calls, an airtight backstory that is _mostly true_ , a flight the day after Christmas that can accommodate one very large space wolf, and a rental car. They travel for most of the day, with Shiro doing the last leg of driving since the roads are snowy and Keith doesn’t have experience.

They could have done a more untraditional travel route via Garrison ships or even by Kosmo poof, but they’d decided against either. There was something nice about this kind of traditional and normal, about doing it just like anyone else would. The trip isn’t about aliens or war or any of the other crazier things that have filled up both of their lives over the past few years. This trip is Shiro going home for the holidays, introducing his partner to his parents. Nice, normal.

Admittedly that last part is extremely crazy when Shiro thinks about it, but still. It had felt right to blend (as well as one could with Kosmo) back into the crowd.

By the time Shiro is driving up the long snow-packed driveway to the cabins, it’s almost full dark. It’s just about dinnertime, and the holiday lights are up to mark out where the snow has been cleared enough to drive through. It lends the last bit of the drive a kind of magical feeling.

“Wow, winter cabins, you weren’t kidding,” Keith says when they park.

There’s a good five inches of snow on everything, and it looks beautiful with the twinkling lights. Two of the cabins are lit up from inside, and Shiro catches one of the curtains pull aside and his mother’s face peek out.

“Yeah. You ready for this? Last chance to back out.”

“I roughed it on the back of a space whale in the quantum abyss for a year, Shiro. Nothing phases me anymore.”

Shiro laughs, turning off the car’s engine.

“Alright, but the code word is Slav.”

Keith snorts and finishes buttoning up his coat. Shiro does similarly, and in the backseat Kosmo perks up, aware suddenly of the end of their journey.

“And your parents are cool with Kosmo, right?”

“They have a dog bed and everything ready,” Shiro says.

Keith nods, a smile edging his lips. Then they open the car to grab their bags and hustle through the cold to the cabin. Kosmo follows by cheating, poofing directly onto the porch and keeping his paws warm and dry.

Before they can even knock, his mother is at the door and swinging it open with a smile.

“Takashi!”

It’s difficult to hug her with his bag in hand, but in a second Keith has taken it off him and Shiro is able to wrap both arms around his mom. She’s tall like he is, it’s where he got his height from, but with his bulk he still dwarfs her. Still, she squeezes tight and it brings Shiro immediately back to his younger self and being held safe.

He knew he missed seeing them, but until this moment it hadn’t truly hit him how much.

“Missed you,” he says into her hair.

“Missed you, _Hoshi_.”

When they pull apart, her eyes go immediately over his shoulder to where Keith must be standing.

“Oh! I have us all standing out here in the cold!” She laughs and backs up, waving them in. Shiro at once steps aside to gesture Keith through who is now doing all of the heavy lifting. Shiro would apologize maybe, except Keith looks absolutely charmed to be doing so. Kosmo follows.

Inside the cabin is warm and cozy. It smells of dinner, and Shiro’s stomach immediately takes notice. He notices Kosmo sniffing the air with the same interest and gives him a look to say _behave_. Kosmo has been known to snatch a kitchen scrap a time or two, but this is not the place for it. Not if Shiro wants to make a good impression with his parents and his boyf— Keith.

“Hello, and you must be Keith! I’m Satsuki.”

“Nice to meet you.”

They shake hands. His mom is near radiating with happiness, and it’s great to see on her. Shiro’s missed her so much.

“I’m so glad you could come! It’s been _so long_ since Takashi brought someone home.”

“Mom!” Shiro’s taken the bags and placed them beside the doorway as they both begin to take off their outer layers.

Keith smiles. “I know, he can be a bit of a workaholic.”

“Don’t I know it, just like your father. Family is important too, you know.” At this his mom pokes him meaningfully in the side. “You must make time for love.”

“Uh-huh,” is the best Shiro can manage at that. He purposefully does not look at Keith as they move into the living room.

“Well I’m glad you could be a good influence on our son,” his mom says. She bends then to offer her hand to Kosmo. “And Kosmo of course, wow he really is beautiful.” Kosmo presses into her hand, allowing for an ear scratch. “Accommodations for you are right there by the fire,” his mother points Kosmo to an absolutely enormous dog bed in front of the hearth. The wolf makes a soft whuff and goes immediately to flop down onto it. “Now you two, come and sit. Hideo will be finished with dinner soon. Let me just go put the kettle on.”

His mother goes into the kitchen, and Shiro sits on the couch with Keith beside him. Keith looks pleased in a way that Shiro immediately knows won’t end well for him.

“Your mom’s nice,” Keith whispers conspiratorially.

“Hm.”

“Knows you well, you workaholic,” Keith says.

In retaliation Shiro reaches over and twines his hand with Keith’s. It’s enough to startle Keith.

“Don’t you start,” Shiro warns.

But then Keith is nudging his side, squeezing his hand. Shiro ignores how it makes his heart clench.

“What?”

“She’s bad enough without someone agreeing with her,” Shiro says.

Keith snorts. “But I thought you wanted your parents to like me, best way to do that is to be agreeable.”

Shiro makes sure Keith is looking when he rolls his eyes.

They snipe like that until his mother comes back with the tea tray. Shiro almost jumps, almost pulls his hand out of Keith’s as if they’ve been caught. He remembers at the last moment that he’s allowed this. That they’re supposed to be selling ‘happy couple’.

Still, Keith’s hand in his is a heavy weight that keeps drawing his attention, making it difficult to relax.

It doesn’t get better through the small talk, or the dinner that follows. His parents do take turns grilling Keith, but at every turn Keith is clever and charming in a way Shiro rarely gets to see. He plays besotted boyfriend so well that even Shiro begins to forget they’re spinning a web of lies.

At several points Shiro has to painfully remind himself that this is why Keith’s been picked up on so many undercover jobs for the Blades recently. He’s quick on his feet, confident when he needs to be, and a great actor. It only goes to illustrate what a brilliant man Keith’s grown up to be. Not that Shiro ever had any doubts.

Shiro reminds himself once again that Keith likes him as only a _friend_. That’s where the line is, and all the affectionate compliments, hand holding, and physical touching is just for the latest role that Keith is playing. They don’t mean anything.

Once the food is cleared, his mom orders them back to the living room. His parents clean the kitchen and then his dad excuses himself to have some downtime.

“Now tell me Keith,” Shiro’s mom says as she finally takes a seat on the adjacent couch. She has a bit of chicken scrap from dinner, and Kosmo comes over immediately to take it gently from her hand. “Where did you find Kosmo?”

“Oh, uh. On the back of a space whale actually,” Keith says

His mom, to her credit, manages to rein in her surprise. She lets Kosmo lick her fingers clean and then begins to give him a scratching.

“Had just as many adventures as my son did out there, huh?”

“I didn’t really intend to. It just kind of happened.”

“Didn’t intend to?” She gives him a dubious look. Even if post-war everyone knows less about Keith than the rest of the paladins, there’s still quite a wealth of information about him publicly. “You were at the Garrison to pilot, right?”

“Yeah, um,” it’s the first time Keith’s stumbled all night, and Shiro moves on instinct, covering his hand with Shiro’s own. “But unlike Shiro, I never really wanted to be a leader. I mean I liked flying, yeah, but before everything with Voltron started, I wasn’t exactly as suited for... adventuring.”

His mom’s face does something then. “Oh. Oh!” She turns to Shiro. “Is Keith the cadet you were helping?”

Shiro blinks at her, blank for a moment before a vague memory starts to come back. There was a conversation he had with his mom years and years ago about Keith. Back when Shiro’s biggest problems were keeping a cadet out of trouble. He’d told his mother something, but he can’t remember now exactly what.

“Uh. Probably, I don’t know— “

“Yes I remember now. You said he was brilliant, if a little impatient. Had trouble with some of the other cadets.”

Beside him, Shiro can feel Keith stiffen. Before Shiro can jump in and apologize or try to save the conversation, his mother goes on.

“Well that’s what they said about Takashi too. Did he ever tell you about that?”

He shakes his head. When Shiro turns to look at him, Keith’s cheeks are pink and his face is carefully guarded. “No.”

His mom laughs, unaware of Keith’s shift. “No, he wouldn’t. But yes, I know Takashi loves to play the golden boy these days, but he really was such a troublemaker once. When he was sick he never wanted to rest, never wanted to listen to anybody. The amount of parent-teacher conferences we went to!”

Now it’s Shiro’s turn to be ruffled. Those happened so long ago that Shiro barely thinks about them anymore, but he remembers enough to know that what his mom says is true. It was one of the reasons Shiro took such an interest in Keith in the first place. He’d recognized himself in Keith.

“Really?” Keith leans forward now, the uncertainty falling off him.

“Oh yes. Drove us up the wall before he settled into the Garrison.” She laughs again and moves to scratching under Kosmo’s chin. “But in the end I think it was good. Sometimes a little rebellion helps.” She looks between them, a little sly. “Can’t imagine you win a galactic war by following all the rules, hm?”

This gets a laugh out of Keith before he settles back beside Shiro, closer than before.

“No,” he says, “No you don’t.”

“And you got this wonderful dog too,” his mom says. “Now tell me everything about this space whale situation, I want to know and Takashi never tells me anything about your time in space.”

“What! I do too.” Shiro says.

His mother practically rolls her eyes, and it gets an amused breath from Keith.

“He really doesn’t. So tell me everything about this cutie,” her hands are still going in Kosmo’s fur and the wolf looks half asleep. “And don’t leave anything out.”

“Alright,” Keith says, and then does.

By the end of the evening when Keith and his mom are all talked out, his mother hands Shiro the key to their own cabin. At some point they’d ganged up on him, sharing embarrassing stories back and forth, and it had been in equal measure unfair and delightful. Seeing them getting along had done a number on Shiro’s heart. It was clear his mom liked Keith and that Keith, in turn, liked her. 

Shiro is overjoyed by this turn of events, but his meddlesome heart really, really didn’t need to witness it. To give him _ideas_. He takes a deep breath as he gets up from the couch. Maybe some shut eye will help. Maybe tomorrow Shiro can wake up refreshed and with a stronger dedication to the fiction they are playing.

“Sleep in _Hoshi_ ,” his mother says, kissing his cheek. “We’ll have breakfast at eleven, but there’s no rush, everything will hold, okay?” She turns then to Keith. “I’m sure you’ll make sure he rests, hm? Make sure he knows what a vacation actually is.”

Keith’s smiling, rosy cheeked from the warmth of the fire and the mulled wine they had for dessert. “Of course. Thank you for the meal, for Kosmo too.”

His mother kisses Keith’s cheek. “Of course, anything for our sons. Even the four legged sort.”

Keith whistles and Kosmo gets up from his lazy post-dinner sprawl near the fire. They go back to the front door where their bags wait. They both bid his parents goodnight before heading briefly out into the cold.

Their cabin is the next one over, but it’s set far enough away to feel private. Shiro’s never stayed in a separate cabin from his parents, these are usually occupied by other relatives, but it’s fun this time to get his own.

The walk is surprisingly nice despite the cold. It’s a clarifying moment between all the gauze of food and wine and fire. Considering Kosmo hasn’t poofed himself to their destination, he must feel the same.

There are lights strung between the cabins, so they follow it through the trees to where they will be staying. Snow is piled up just beyond the lights, but they all stay on the packed trail to the cabin. On the porch Shiro fusses with the key as Kosmo shakes snow from his fur.

Inside the cabin is stone cold, fire unlit.

They drop their things by the front door and Shiro goes immediately to the fireplace to start it up. Keith turns on the lights and then pulls out mugs from the kitchen.

“Tea?”

They work around each other in near silence. Shiro stokes the fire until it begins to warm the cabin and Keith puts a kettle on and then moves their luggage into the bedroom. There’s no dog bed here for Kosmo, but collectively they pile the spare blankets in front of the fireplace and Kosmo plops himself down.

Shiro uses the bathroom, changing into pajamas to get ready for bed. He can hear Keith in the kitchen clinking around and fixing up the tea. Back in the living room Keith hands him a warm mug and then goes to change himself. When Keith returns he sits beside Shiro on the couch.

It’s still a bit cold in the cabin, but Shiro is warm down into his bones sitting here with Keith. Beside him Keith sighs happily after the first sip.

“This is nice.”

“Yeah? Not too much?”

Keith shakes his head. “No, your parents are great. I like your mom a lot.”

“They like you,” Shiro says.

“I’m glad.”

They sit in silence as the fire crackles on. Kosmo fusses with his bedding a bit before settling in for the night. It’s so relaxing and domestic that Shiro could almost believe this was the real thing. The two of them cuddled up on the couch as the snow falls outside, nothing to do but be together—

“Hey Shiro?” Keith interrupts Shiro’s daydream.

“Hm?”

“Why does your mom call you Hoshi?”

“Oh,” Shiro takes a sip of his tea to buy himself time.

He’d never had an opportunity to bring Adam home, so it’s been years and years since anyone has heard the nickname. He doesn’t know why, but sharing this thing feels… intimate. Private. He’s glad it’s Keith, and not anyone else that he’s going to share it with.

“Uh, it means ‘star’. Nickname from when I was little.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. There was this kid’s book I loved,” Shiro says. “It was about a little star that wanders out of its constellation and gets lost. Mom used to say that was me, always out exploring, wandering too far. It kinda stuck.”

“Did he find his way home in the end?” Keith asks.

“Of course, is there any other way children’s books end?”

Keith hums. When Shiro looks up, Keith is smiling at him, fond.

“Very fitting.”

Shiro chuckles. “Rather more than I would care for it to.”

“Mm,” Keith says. Then, “So you don’t tell your parents about your time in space?”

He shakes his head. “They know about the war, vaguely. Obviously the arm. I left out a lot. I didn’t want them to worry.”

“Yeah.”

There’s another gap of silence where they finish their drinks. Shiro collects the cups and takes them to rinse out.

“Bed?” He asks when he returns.

Keith’s mid-yawn, so the question really doesn’t require an answer. Shiro banks the fire to just a source of heat for the cabin while Keith checks that Kosmo is settled in for the night.

In the bedroom they both come face to face with the unavoidable truth of their lodgings: _there is only one bed_. When Shiro had changed earlier he had purposefully not thought about it because there was no need to. He and Keith have shared small spaces plenty of times and it was fine. Just because they’re currently pretending to date in a snowy winter cabin during peak holiday romance season doesn’t mean anything. 

He takes a deep breath and gets his toothbrush.

They take turns in the bathroom, and then crawl into bed. The bed is big enough that they don’t have to touch, and so they don’t. Shiro still lays in the semi-dark with the awareness of Keith’s presence beside him. The bedroom door is open for the heat, but it’s the heat of Keith that Shiro truly feels radiating beside him.

“This is nice,” Keith says again. “Thanks for inviting me.”

Shiro closes his eyes, settling into the plush mattress. The comforter is thick and heavy atop them, and it’s a nice change from the thin heat-wicking sheets of the Garrison.

“Thank you for coming,” Shiro says back. “Goodnight Keith.”

“Goodnight.”

##

Shiro comes awake slowly, feeling warm and more comfortable than he has in a very long time. The only reason he’s even waking at all is a tickle of something against his nose. Senses filter in as he wakes, the first of which is a weight and pleasant heat against him. It’s more weight and heat than a comforter would account for, which rouses his mind further.

He remembers then where he fell asleep, and with who. Immediately Shiro’s heart leaps. _Keith_.

He doesn’t open his eyes, can’t bear to see it. He can tell just from sound and weight distribution that Keith is tucked up against his shoulder, arm thrown over his chest. It’s a thoughtless sprawl, the kind one would have just from tossing in the night. It doesn’t mean anything, Shiro knows this.

And yet.

A riot of butterflies bursts to life in his belly. The cabin is near silent and cold beyond their little cocoon. It’s clear the fire has long gone out, but for the moment Shiro is unconcerned. Nothing short of Keith waking could get him to move.

Maybe it’s not right, to enjoy this, to be concentrating on keeping his breathing steady to preserve the moment, but Shiro can’t help himself. It feels good, this closeness. Right. Keith fits against him like he’s meant to be, like this is the hundredth time instead of the first.

The thought of this becoming a habit burns through him. Is that what it would be if this were real? If Keith really was his. Shiro shouldn’t be thinking it, shouldn’t be letting the fantasy get away from him, but he feels especially weak this morning. It had been a lovely evening and lovelier night, and now he’s here with not a care in the world.

He soaks it in, memorizing the weight of Keith, the soft sound of his breathing. Keith’s hair continues to tickle at Shiro’s nose, but he focuses on the smell of Keith’s shampoo, the slight wood smoke scent that clings to him. 

He aches with the wanting of more. The fantasy comes to him, how easy it would be to tilt Keith’s head and wake him with a brush of lips. His skin exposed to the air is cold, it would be a cold first kiss, but he knows he would quickly warm against Keith. Keith has always lit a fire in him.

Minutes drift by, and eventually Shiro opens his eyes. There’s mostly just a mess of dark hair obscuring his vision, but even that is charming. Keith makes a soft, sleeping sound and shifts against him. Shiro’s stupid heart trips over itself.

_Get a grip Shirogane._

He wishes he could. It’s a good while before Keith starts to make movements that indicate waking. Shiro considers pretending to be asleep, but there’s only so much faking he’s capable of, and he needs to save it all for their dating ruse.

“Mmm,” Keith mumbles against Shiro’s throat. “Morning.”

Shiro swallows hard, tries to pretend this is totally normal. “Morning.”

Keith flops back over, freeing Shiro with a stretch. “Good bed, wow.”

His hair is a wreck, and Shiro can’t help the charmed smile that spreads across his mouth.

“I know, right?”

Keith finishes stretching and then pulls the covers back up to shield himself from the cold.

“What time is it?”

Shiro calls to his datapad and gets an answer that it’s 9:42AM.

“Great, we have time,” Keith says.

“Time for what?”

“To be lazy. Remember? I promised your mom,” Keith says.

He turns over onto his side to face Shiro. It mushes his face into the pillow and he looks adorably soft. Shiro rolls to copy him.

“Hmm, but what if I wanted to answer some work emails,” Shiro teases.

“Don’t you dare.”

“Hmm,” Shiro fakes like he’s going to reach behind him and grab the datapad.

Immediately Keith snatches his arm and pulls it back. Before a real tussle can begin, Keith twines their fingers together.

“Vacation, Shiro!”

“I am currently on one.”

“That means not even emails,” Keith says sternly. “Weren’t you looking forward to this? Anyway it would be so rude to start doing work in bed with your boyfriend right here.”

Shiro’s expression must do _something_ then, because Keith laughs.

“Keith!”

“I know, I know. I didn’t mean that to sound so…” He drops Shiro’s hand to wave vaguely. He clears his throat, looking away. “Just trying to inhabit the role.”

Right. Yes. The role.

“Save it for my parents,” Shiro directs half-joking and half-serious. He’s not sure he will survive if Keith keeps this up when it’s just them. Shiro knows he doesn’t mean it, but without an audience to play to, Shiro’s head could start to get… ideas.

“Yeah,” Keith says. There’s a lapse of silence, then, “So tell me about these cabins. When you came here as a kid, what did you do?”

This is much safer ground. Shiro shoves away the dangerous thoughts and searches his memory instead for stories of his time here.

##

They waste the morning talking about Shiro’s childhood, and then around 11:30 Keith allows them to get out of bed. He orders Shiro to the shower and promises to handle the fire and Kosmo. Shiro perhaps would argue, except after a morning snuggled warm in bed with Keith he could really use the semi-cold water.

It’s warmer in the cabin when Shiro gets out, but he still shivers his way through dressing. Keith goes to wash after he’s done, and Shiro busies himself making tea for the two of them. After, bundled and with warm drinks in hand, they make their way out of the cabin.

In the bright morning light everything outside nearly sparkles. There’s a fresh blanket of snow, about half a meter, and Kosmo dashes out the door and straight into it.

The second Kosmo bounds and plops into a too-deep snow drift, Keith nearly spills his tea laughing. Shiro rescues it at the last moment while Keith guffaws over Kosmo’s absolute befuddlement of the deep snow. Kosmo manages to poof himself out, but he lands in another area and sinks belly deep into the fluffy whitness. The wolf snaps at the snow as if in annoyance, then bares his teeth at the coldness.

“Kosmo!” Keith calls. “Kosmo the path!”

Keith tries to indicate the slight tread between this cabin and his parents, but the wolf doesn’t listen. He bounds instead through the thick snow, looking equal parts excited and horrified by its cold plushness. Keith’s grin is so infectious Shiro doesn’t even mind standing out in the cold watching Kosmo play around.

Watching Kosmo, Shiro thinks that perhaps later after a belly full of breakfast he should take Keith out to play in the snow. There’s something about his expression watch Kosmo run around that makes him think Keith would enjoy himself just as much. Shiro selfishly wants to see that.

Eventually they do get Kosmo to calm down, and make it to his parent’s cabin. They have to pause on the porch to request a towel from his mom so they can wipe the snow and water off Kosmo. Kosmo takes it happily, licking at Keith’s face as Keith grins and playfully reprimands him.

“How’d you sleep?” His mom asks when they all come inside and settle around the kitchen table.

“Wonderful.”

Keith beside him is nodding. “It was really cozy, Shiro even slept in a little bit.”

“Oh, is that so?” Shiro’s father brings over several plates piled high with freshly cooked breakfast foods. “Must be serious about you then,” Shiro’s dad addresses this to Keith. “Taka wouldn’t stay in bed even when his mother begged him to during his periods of illness.”

“Dad!”

Shiro isn’t sure if it’s the sudden heat of the room or his own flush, but he wishes suddenly he hadn’t chosen such a heavy sweater to wear today. Both his parents and Keith laugh.

“It is just good to see you happy,” his mother says, dropping a kiss to his forehead before she takes her seat.

“And good to see you taking a vacation,” his father adds.

Shiro doesn’t bother turning to look at Keith, he can feel the smug look practically radiating off him. He busies himself instead with filling up his breakfast plate.

##

They eat until stuffed and then end up lounging lazily in front of the fire. They chat, casual things about work and life. His parents get in more than a dozen questions for Keith about their relationship, and Keith answers them all seamlessly. It’s made easier when most of the answers are actually the truth. They do work together, practically live together with how often they’re at each other’s apartments, and spend most of their downtime together hanging out. Shiro hates and loves how easy it all is.

After some time digesting and many cups of tea, Shiro suggests he and Keith go out.

“Kosmo I’m sure could use another outing,” Shiro says. At this Kosmo perks up from the lavish dog bed, tail thumping in excitement.

“I need to go back and change first,” Keith says. Then to Shiro’s parents, “Would you like to join us?”

His parents wave them off politely, but before they can make an exit to go get properly winter fortified, his dad calls him back.

“I just need him for a moment,” his dad says to Keith. “Go on ahead.”

Keith nods and then goes out into the snow with Kosmo. When Shiro turns his attention back to his parents, they’re both looking at him with excitement. He feels something shift in his belly in warning.

“What?”

“He’s wonderful!” His mother grins, wrapping her arms around Shiro to squeeze.

“As if there would be any doubt, Taka has excellent taste.”

Shiro flushes hot all the way down to his toes. “Um.”

“But not just that,” His mother pulls back, waving a hand at Shiro’s father, “Go, go get it, quick!”

His father does, disappearing into the bedroom and coming back a moment later. Shiro sees the box in his father’s hand, and his stomach swoops in a strange combination of excitement and dread.

“I know, I know, it’s been what… almost a year?” His mother asks.

That had been the story he and Keith had come up with. Together for ten months, still new-ish enough that Shiro hadn’t shared it to his parents until now. It was a stretch, but Shiro knew he needed some time behind them for their familiarity to make sense, for Keith coming home with him to make sense.

“This isn’t a now thing, unless you want it to be,” His mother takes the box and presses it into Shiro’s hands. “But your grandparent’s rings, well they belong to you. And we want you to know you have our blessing. Keith has our blessing. He’s wonderful.”

Shiro manages with his years of experience in war and training not to gape, but only just. He’s utterly stunned by the gesture. It’s… momentous that his parents are giving him this. It means something, something much more than just a family heirloom or tradition.

He realizes as he takes the box that he has never before considered getting to this point, not really. With his disease and then the abduction and then the war. At no point in his life has Shiro ever considered that he would live long enough for this. For marriage.

Looking up at his parents glossy-eyes, he realizes for the first time that they hadn’t either. The reason they hadn’t given him the rings before this was because they didn’t think he would have a chance to—

The weight of the box in Shiro’s hand is substantial.

“O-oh,” Shiro manages finally. It’s woefully laconic, but the words quite literally desert him.

His mother laughs wetly and kisses his cheek. “Don’t look so surprised, did you think we would hate him?”

“No, no of course not. Um. We just aren’t—“ _at marriage_ , Shiro thinks. The words drop off though, stolen from him by the pure want of it. Marriage, with Keith. _Marriage_.

And the absolute absurdness of it all is that if Shiro took this ring back to Keith and asked him to up the ruse, Keith would. Shiro knows he would. Keith did this all so easily, and he’d do it again for Shiro. He would. Theirs is a love and a friendship that really does mean they would do anything for each other. That comes with the responsibility of not abusing it, of being careful and responsible with the power he wields when it comes to Keith. He cannot possibly bring this up to him.

But looking down at the small box, _fuck_ how Shiro’s heart aches for it.

“You don’t have to do anything you’re not ready for,” his father says, firm hand on Shiro’s shoulder. “But if you are, we’d love Keith to be a part of this family.”

Shiro nods numbly. The words, whatever words he should say, are stuck in his throat. Both his parents hug him and then pull away.

“Thank you,” Shiro manages.

“Now go, don’t keep him waiting,” his mom ushers.

Before Shiro’s even gotten his bearings, he’s pushed to the door and then out. It’s only by reflex that he thinks to tuck the box into his coat pocket. One prominent thought stays at the top of his consciousness as the blast of cold air hits him— he can’t tell Keith. Even if Keith agrees, goes along with it, Shiro’s not sure his own heart could take it.

Best not to overcomplicate.

When Shiro gets back to the cabin, Keith is in the bathroom. He takes the opportunity to shove the ring in his bedside drawer where he won’t have to look at it. Best to just out of sight and out of mind it for now. There will be leagues of time after this trip to have a crisis about his parents giving him a wedding ring for his fake boyfriend.

Keith finishes changing and then Shiro takes a turn, pulling on his heaviest sweater and socks to go out.

“Everything good?” Keith asks when they’re lacing up snow boots at the door.

He asks because Shiro’s been particularly quiet as they got ready. Shiro does his best to shake it off.

“Yeah, just some sentiment stuff,” he says because that’s true. Keith hums in acknowledgement and doesn’t pry. He’s wonderful at knowing when Shiro needs time to let things simmer.

Beside them Kosmo is doing a little excited dance, ready for them to go out. Shiro smiles and zips his heavy coat.

“I’m sorry, can you not poof outside if you wanted to?” Shiro asks the wolf.

Keith grins, “He could, but he likes company.”

Shiro can’t argue with that logic. They go out.

At once Kosmo dashes once more into a huge snow pile, making Keith laugh. It looks good on him, the carefree smile and flushed cheeks. Shiro knows he’s never done winter before, and looking at him now Shiro can’t help but think that a shame. He looks wonderful in his dark winter coat and hat, the red scarf wrapped around his neck to keep him warm.

Shiro leads them away from the cabin and into the woods. There’s an old hiking trail he used to take as a kid, and despite all the snow he can pick it out easily. The trees are heavy with white, and alongside them Kosmo hops through the snow having fully adjusted to the cold and now having an enormously good time.

Keith takes to picking up branches or pinecones when he finds them and tossing them ahead for Kosmo to find. To his credit the wolf doesn’t teleport to make it easier, he seems to be genuinely enjoying the tactility of it.

“It’s beautiful out here,” Keith says after ten minutes.

It does look very much like something out a holiday movie. The snow is crisp white and untouched until Kosmo plows into it. The trees are evergreen and perfectly festive with their frosting. The hot air of their breaths pillows around their heads, but nearly everything else is silent.

There are some larger game that no doubt live in these woods, but it’s midday and there’s no sight or sound of any. Shiro reasons that Kosmo is probably more than enough of a deterrent for any animals to steer clear.

“It is.”

“I can see why your family comes here,” Keith says.

They’re walking close, gloved hands nearly brushing. There’s no excuse to take his hand, but Shiro wants to. Wants to pull Keith tighter to his side and—

“Kosmo don’t!” Keith shouts and takes off running.

He’s not fast enough, or Kosmo doesn’t care to listen. The wolf has his teeth around a branch of one of the trees up ahead and is tugging to get the stick free. On the third sharp tug the whole tree shivers and then dumps its snow.

They watch Kosmo disappear under a small mountain of snow with an alarmed _boof_. Keith almost falls into the pile as he gets there laughing.

“You dummy!” He calls at Kosmo, ineffectively trying to shovel at the snow and get the wolf out.

A second later a sizzling pop cracks through the silence and Kosmo reappears beside him, snow all in his fur. He leaps at Keith, tackling him and licking at his face.

“Oof, cold!”

Shiro jogs to get to them, and then can’t help himself. He spies the branch above has just a spot of snow left. He reaches up and tugs it to drop it on the two of them. Keith sputters when it lands on his head, and Kosmo snorts and shakes it off.

“Hey!”

Then Shiro has to duck as a handful of snow is tossed at him. The miss doesn’t deter Keith. He struggles up from beneath snow and wolf to hurl another bit of snow at Shiro.

“Come back here you fiend!”

But already Shiro is laughing and running away. He goes further into the woods, slowing only when he’s certain he’s put enough distance between them. At that moment he turns back to see Keith vanish in a spark of light, and turns in horror to a snowball to the face.

“Hah!”

“Oh, is that how you want to play it?” Shiro taunts.

He reaches down for a handful of snow. Keith and Kosmo take off running.

“All’s fair in love and war!” Keith shouts back at him. “And you started it.”

Keith could normally outrun him, but in the unfamiliar terrain Shiro has an advantage. He also has excellent aim and range. He manages to get Keith twice before Keith and Kosmo team up once again to pop near him and get him in the shoulder.

“Cheat!” Shiro yells as Keith poofs away.

Keith staggers back in on the other side of the poof, almost falling into a tree. Shiro takes off running after him. They go back and forth like that for a while. Both of them dodge to the best of their ability, but Kosmo takes to playing both sides, and it ensures both of them get more than a fair share of snow to the face.

After a little while Shiro is panting, throat burning from the cold air. His stamina is not what it used to be.

“Tired already old man?”

“I can see you panting too,” Shiro shoots back.

“I think I’m still up 8-7, you throwing in the towel?” Keith’s a few meters away, smirk on full display. He’s fully flushed and gorgeous. Shiro rallies himself.

“Not just yet,” he says, and then scoops up snow and sprints at Kosmo who’s just off to his right. As soon as he makes contact Kosmo poofs him.

They come out just ahead of where Keith’s running, and it’s all too easy to shove the snow down the back of Keith’s jacket as the man collides with him.

They go down, Keith squawking about the cold as they both land in a pile of snow. Kosmo hops away to avoid being collateral. Shiro’s laughing though, even as Keith climbs on top of him and shoves snow inside his coat.

“How do you like that!”

But not even the chill that zips down his spine can ruin Shiro’s mood. He wraps his arms around Keith and pulls him down. The man sputters, but relaxes quickly into the hug. Shiro presses the advantage and flips them to put Keith in the snow.

“I like it just fine,” Shiro grins. “I think that’s tie game.”

Keith shifts beneath him and then makes a sour face at the snow melting in his jacket. Despite the face, Shiro still thinks he looks lovely. All that dark hair against the white snow is a striking image. Shiro’s always secretly thought Keith looked best just after a workout, bright eyed and vibrating with energy, and it’s on full display now.

He has the sudden intense urge to lean down and kiss him.

“Fine, truce,” Keith says.

Shiro tries to blink the thought away, but it lingers just on his periphery. It would be so easy to lean down and kiss him here in the snow. It would be cold, but wonderful. Romantic—

“Good first snowball fight?” Shiro forces out, redirecting his thoughts by sheer force of will.

“Yeah.” Keith blinks up at him, a little squinty from the morning brightness. His eyelashes are so long. “Bit cold, but good.”

Shiro swallows hard. “It is snow.”

“Shut up,” Keith says with a smile. Their eyes meet and—

Shiro clears his throat and gets up, stepping back with the excuse of needing to dust the snow off. Keith rights himself and does the same.

“Should probably head back now,” Shiro says, because clearly even a walk in the snow is too dangerous for him. “Could use a hot drink right about now.”

“That sounds amazing,” Keith says.

They walk the whole way back almost shoulder to shoulder, their gloves hands brushing. Shiro tries desperately not to notice.

##

Two days go by in much the same manner. They eat and drink and take walks through the woods. Shiro teaches Keith how to make a snow man, and they roast marshmallows in the fireplace. His parents prepare all the meals even when Shiro tries to help, ushering him out and demanding he spend his vacation relaxing with his partner.

So he does. They play card games, read, and spend time sitting on the porch and watching the snow fall with warm drinks in hand. It’s the most nothing Shiro’s done in… ages. If he would have come without Keith, Shiro is sure he would have been bored out of his mind.

Instead he gets to share all of this with Keith. He tells stories about his childhood, and Keith shares back. There’s not a lot they don’t know about each other, but still they manage to find things. It’s an easy routine, the way they orbit one another.

Shiro goes to bed every night wishing the space between them didn’t exist, they wake up tangled more often than not and Shiro holds his breath the whole time, trying to make it lasts. Everything makes him wish that this ruse was more than just that.

In front of his parents they cuddle by the fire, hold hands, and on one notable occasion Shiro finds excuse to drop a kiss on Keith’s cheek. It’s the absolute sweetest kind of torture.

And then comes New Years.

While most of Shiro’s extended family has stayed home to do their own Christmas’, his parents tell him the day before new year’s eve that everyone will be coming for the new year’s party. His mother lists off the family and friends heading down, and Shiro feels panic crawl back up into his chest. Lying to just his parents was bad enough, but he hadn’t considered the rest of their family.

When he and Keith get back to their cabin for the evening, Shiro immediately brings it up.

“It’s fine, Shiro.”

“Are you sure? I completely forgot about new year’s. They don’t always do a big party but—“

“Really,” Keith says handing Shiro a mug. “If there really is a lot of people, maybe that’ll even be better. Keep the focus off just us, you know?”

Shiro’s not sure he agrees, but takes the mug anyway. “Yeah, it’s just… not what you signed up for.”

Keith plops down beside him. “It’s exactly what I signed up for. I’m having a great time.”

“Oh,” Shiro says. Then, “really?”

Keith nudges him playfully. “Yes of course! What’s not to like, three delicious meals a day, absolutely no work to do, and have you seen Kosmo in the snow?”

“He is pretty cute.”

“Understatement of the year. I sent a video to Pidge and she won’t stop bugging me for more.” As if on cue, in the bedroom there’s a ping from a datapad. “See!”

Keith sets his mug down and gets up to go get it. Shiro sighs and leans back into the couch. He’s warm, comfy with the heat of the fire and a full belly, but the party still worries him. More people means more opportunities for their charade to fall apart. Or at least get more complicated.

“Hey, I think that was your datapad, want me to get it?” Keith calls from the room.

“Sure!”

Shiro sips his tea and mulls the situation over. They’ll be going home on the first, and maybe Keith is right and it won’t be so bad. Shiro is sort of looking forward to seeing everyone.

The guilt of the lie though is beginning to weigh on him. If he didn’t want it to be true so much, then maybe it wouldn’t, but...

“Uh. Shiro?”

“Hm?”

He turns at Keith’s tone to see him come out of the bedroom, the ring box in hand. Shiro nearly dumps his tea with how quickly he stands up.

“I thought your datapad was in the side table. Um.”

“That’s not—! My parents—“

“They want us to get married?!” Keith’s eyes are as wide as saucers.

“Uh,” Shiro’s suddenly hot all over. “They um, just gave it to me, just in case. I wasn’t going to— it’s just, you know a family heirloom.”

“Oh,” Keith sits on the edge of the couch as though his strings have been cut. “Oh no. Have we fucked up? Shiro, I don’t want them to hate me!”

“No!” Shiro rushes over. He goes to take the box from Keith, but Keith closes his hand around it. “They won’t hate you!”

“Shiro, they think we’re heading toward marriage!”

“Maybe we are!”

The second he says it, Shiro knows it’s a mistake. They cannot, _cannot_ do this. It’s too far, way over the line of an okay lie. Having a fake boyfriend for an event is lightyears from holiday engagement.

“W-hat?”

“I uh. I mean, nothing. Look, they mostly just gave it to me for me to have. For the future.”

Keith takes a deep breath, but his eyes are still on the box. “Okay. Yeah.”

Shiro coaxes him up and around the couch to sit properly.

“Nothing has changed. I didn’t want to freak you out which is why I didn’t mention it.”

“Ah.” There’s a beat of silence, and then, “well consider me freaked out.”

“Sorry,” Shiro says.

“No it’s fine, it was just, uh. Surprising.”

“Yeah imagine me when they sprung it on me the other day,” Shiro says.

“You really weren’t kidding about your mom, huh?”

“N-ope,” Shiro says a bit too loud.

Keith laughs and the tension releases. After a moment Keith gets a strange look in his eye. “So can I?”

He’s holding the box up, the meaning clear. Shiro doesn’t know what else to do but nod. Keith flips open the box, displaying a set of rings. One has a diamond, but the other is just a gold band. Keith plucks that one out.

“They’re beautiful,” Keith says. He turns the ring over in his fingers, inspecting it.

“Yeah,” Shiro says. He has to force himself to breathe. None of this is real, but seeing a ring in Keith’s hands, one of his family’s rings… _fuck_.

Then Keith is looking up at him, some of that cheekiness coming back into his features. “Think it would fit?”

Before Shiro can stop him, Keith takes the ring and slips it onto his finger.

“Ah, bit big,” Keith moves it in demonstration.

It is a big, but only slightly. It’s certainly in no danger of falling off. Shiro should have known the ring would look just right on Keith’s finger. To Shiro’s foolish, aching heart it looks like it belongs to him.

“What do you think Mr. Shirogane?” Keith holds out his hand a little flippantly, making it a joke. “Or should I say, dear fiancé?”

Shiro can only think to blame the shock or lack of oxygen currently to his brain for what he does next. He takes Keith’s hand and brings it to his lips, dropping a kiss just where the ring is.

“I think it looks perfect on you, sweetheart.”

He wants to meet that same joking energy, but his tone falls short. The way Keith inhales and then takes back his hand tells Shiro everything he needs to know. Shiro clears his throat and then gets up, chastised.

“Well, um. I think I’ll go shower since it’s late. Want to be well rested for tomorrow.”

“Yeah, of course,” Keith says.

As Shiro clears the living room, he hears the sound of the ring box snap shut. He tries not to feel it like a sliver to his heart, but he doesn’t think he’s successful. He has no one to blame but himself, and his wonderful but over-enthusiastic parents. 

Later, when they both get into bed to sleep the mood is markedly different. Everything externally is the same, the crackling fire, the slight snores from Kosmo, and the discreet six inches of space between them, but it feels different. Shiro doesn’t even know how either.

He knows he’ll wake up in the morning once again entangled with Keith. That he’ll have those few blissful moments snuggled with Keith in the cozy bed before they get up and start another day.

But he almost doesn’t want it. Some part of the illusion has shattered for Shiro with the ring, some part of him that he can’t unsee, can’t unknow what it felt like to witness the ring on Keith’s finger.

Shiro had _wanted_ Keith to wear the ring. Wanted for it all to be real. He sighs, heart heavy.

“You okay?”

Shiro feels Keith move, rolling onto his side to face Shiro.

“Yeah,” Shiro says. “Just thinking about new years.”

Keith’s hand finds his elbow beneath the covers and gives it a squeeze.

“It won’t be that bad. It’s you and me, we always have fun don’t we?”

Shiro turns over onto his side to look at Keith. He can see just the outlines of his angular face lit by the faint light of the fire.

“We do.”

“So stop worrying. We’ll do some schmoozing, some champagne toasts—“

“Some sparklers,” Shiro adds.

“Ooh sparklers! I haven’t had those since I was a kid.”

Shiro can see him smile, and all at once it wipes away the lingering mood. He’s here with his best friend having an absolutely wonderful time, and he needs to appreciate it. He needs to focus on what he has, not what he doesn’t.

“Mom loves them, so there will be plenty.”

“Excellent,” Keith says. There’s a squeeze this time of Shiro’s hand. “Now go to sleep.”

Shiro snorts at the faint order Keith puts into it. “Very well cadet.” He gets a clumsy shove for that. They sleep.

##

Family starts arriving early. Shiro’s cozy in bed, still half asleep with Keith draped on him, but he can hear the cars and the sound of chatter. He mentally blocks it out and buries his nose in Keith’s hair.

A few minutes more of noise and Keith mumbles sleepily against his chest.

“People are arriving,” Shiro says.

“Mmf,” Keith says.

Shiro wraps his arms around him, daring to give him a squeeze. Keith snuggles closer and Shiro closes his eyes trying to burn this into his memory.

He gets only a few second of this before Kosmo gives a _woof_ from the other room, and the moment is over. Keith groans and pushes up off Shiro.

“Good bed,” Keith declares. “Dumb wolf.”

Shiro couldn’t have said it better himself.

Since they’re likely to have a shorter, less lazy morning, Shiro takes the bathroom first. There he pulls on his outdoor clothing, since with this many people a lot of the party will take place outdoors. When he finishes, Keith takes his turn. Shiro helps himself to the warm mug waiting on the coffee table for him. Before Keith has finished up, there’s a knock on the door.

“Sorry to barge in!” His mom says as she enters. “It’s just, we need some more firewood for the bonfire. Would you be able to run into town? You can take your father’s truck.”

Shiro agrees easily, it’s the first thing that his mother has allowed him to do, and it’s an easy task at that. His mother kisses him in thanks and rushes out.

“Keith, you in for a trip to town?” Shiro calls to the bathroom door.

A moment later Keith opens it, decked all for winter and pulling on his gloves. “Ready!”

They leave Kosmo lounging, and Shiro gets the keys from his dad so they take the old truck back down the long snowy drive and toward town. They stay bundled the whole way, as by the time the heat finally kicks on they’re parking in front of the feed store. Shiro runs in to pay for the wood and then he and Keith load up the truck bed.

All in all it’s good work, good to feel useful in the middle of all this indulging. Keith looks like he feels the same way. By the time they get back and start stacking wood though, Shiro’s feeling the hunger. It’s all he can do to pass off casual hellos to the arrived family members and friends as he makes his way to his parent’s cabin. For good measure he keeps a hand on Keith’s arm so he also doesn’t get picked off by all the curious eyes.

“Thank you Hoshi! And Keith,” His mom kisses them both on the cheek when they come inside. “Now please take off your jackets, food is ready!”

Shiro’s already halfway through pulling off his jacket and gloves. The smell of breakfast is strong, and his mouth is watering. When they sit plates piled high with pancakes are put before them.

“There you— oh!” His mother drops the syrup on the table, and it’s only Shiro’s quick reflexes that avoid a spill.

“Mom, wha—“ Shiro looks up and then follows her gaze to Keith’s hand. His hand that is still wearing the ring.

“Takashi! You didn’t tell me you got engaged!”

His mother says it loud enough that his father and a few of his father’s friends seated in the living room turn their head. Shiro’s throat closes up, all possible responses gone in a moment.

“Congratulations!” His mother’s eyes are glossy and then she’s pulling Keith up out of the chair and hugging him. Keith looks completely and totally shocked by what’s happened. He certainly can’t be more shocked than Shiro though.

They make eye contact and Shiro tries to have a mute conversation with him that mostly just consists of _WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK????_

Keith doesn’t have an answer for him. Not when his mother finishes hugging him and turns to Shiro with an expression of utter delight, not when his father comes up and does the same. Shiro can see word spread of his engagement, the chatter of the family friends picking up in interest. He can practically feel it in the air, wafting out of the cabin and spreading to his whole family.

_Engaged_.

What the fuck.

“Hoshi this is the best gift,” his mother says giving him another squeeze. “When is the wedding? Have you made any decisions?”

Shiro could take it all back. He could… try to explain away why Keith’s wearing his grandparents ring even though he himself doesn’t know. But seeing the absolute joy on his parent’s faces just makes it too difficult. It feels like an impossible thing crush with the truth. He hopes Keith doesn’t kill him for this.

“Uh, we hadn’t decided. Um. Were actually going to keep it on the down low for a bit. Neither of us like the fuss, you know?”

His mom nods as if this makes total sense to her.

“Oh, what a day to celebrate!” She laughs and then goes to her husband and kisses him.

Keith nearly falls back into his seat. Shiro’s appetite has all but disappeared, but for the sake of trying to move the situation past this news, he cuts a bite of pancake. Keith’s eyes have dropped to his own food, and his cheeks are dark pink with flush.

It’s only when Kosmo poofs in ten minutes later and distracts his mother and the group in the living room that Shiro is able to safely speak.

“Keith, why are you wearing the ring?”

“Fuck Shiro,” Keith whispers back. “I’m so sorry, I forgot to take it off last night and then didn’t think about it this morning. I forgot, I didn’t mean to— Shiro I’m _so, so sorry_.”

It’s true he has been wearing gloves all morning, and Shiro knows Keith wouldn’t lie, but _forgot to take it off_ is… a stretch. And Keith does look twitchy, twitchier than he should.

“Okay,” Shiro says instead of further questioning, “Okay this is fine, we’ll get through this.”

He puts his hand down on top of Keith’s, on top of the one with the ring, and tries not to let his thoughts run away with him. It doesn’t have to mean anything, really. Keith could genuinely have forgot.

Except he had the ring box in hand last night when Shiro excused himself. Why didn’t he just put it back into the box…?

And now they’re in it, they’re really in it. His parents are practically glowing they’re so thrilled. When he looks over his mother is fussing over Kosmo adoringly as one would a grandchild. It’s everything Shiro’s ever wanted, but in the worst possible way to have it.

Fuck.

They eventually manage to eat enough of their breakfast to pass, and then quickly excuse themselves. They rush back to their cabin to shouts of congratulations from everyone outside gathering around the new bonfire. The guilt feels like the weight of a mountain on Shiro’s back.

“Fuck,” Keith says the moment the door closes behind him. “Shiro, everyone knows and you didn’t want this— oh fuck what are we going to do, your parents are going to hate me—!”

“Keith,” Shiro says, voice firm.

It cuts off Keith’s panicked babbling. Shiro steps closer and puts his hands on Keith’s shoulders to steady him. Shiro feels just as panicked, but he refuses to give into it. Panicking won’t make it better, they need to get in control of the situation.

“It’s fine, it’s going to be fine. We can have a broken engagement or something much later down the line. Unless you need to do that now?”

Keith makes an agonized groan and folds into Shiro’s arms.

“I can’t believe I was so stupid,” Keith says, voice muffled in Shiro’s sweater.

“You’re not stupid. It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine!

Shiro squeezes him. “Okay, but we’re going to get through it. You and me, right? We’ll just do new years, add engagement to our cover story, and then tomorrow we will go home and put this behind us.”

“You have to lie to your parents,” Keith moans.

“If you’ll recall, I was already doing that.”

Keith snorts. “Sure, but big difference between boyfriend and fiancé.”

“Maybe. But it’s fine. I’m not mad, okay?”

Keith makes a sound and Shiro squeezes him again.

“Okay?”

There’s a petulant huff.

They make it through the rest of the day without too much catastrophe. Everyone asks about the engagement when they reemerge, and Shiro spins a simple story about their relationship that is mostly true, minus the romance. After that the conversation moves on and it becomes infinitely more enjoyable. His mother makes hot spiked cider and he and Keith drink it around the bonfire enjoying the company of Shiro’s family and family friends.

Kosmo’s a big hit for everyone as well, since few have seen the new alien populace outside the Garrison, and even fewer have seen something like Kosmo. They take to throwing sticks and challenging Kosmo to poof and get them. The wolf does so with glee.

After lunch music starts up and the lights all brighten up the looming dark. He and Keith head inside to have some more food from the spread his parents have put out and warm up. By the time they come back out a holoscreen has been set up to broadcast the Time’s Square New Year’s countdown.

There’s still time to go. They have more drinks, more conversations, and then take a rest on one of the benches around the fire. Keith leans into him as it grows colder, and Shiro feeling a little buzzed from the drinks, slings an arm around him.

As midnight approaches there’s sparklers and dancing and a few couples who disappear to their cabins for an early night. They skip the dancing, but Keith plays with sparklers, teasing Kosmo who can’t quite decide if they’re fun or danger.

At a few minutes to midnight flutes of champagne are passed around. Everyone is rowdy and joyful by then despite the cold. The fire, music and lights help. Shiro can’t help feeling the spirit himself.

“Any new year’s resolution?” Keith asks as they clink glasses.

_Marry you_ , is on the tip of Shiro’s tongue. He swallows that very, very bad thought and instead says, “More adventure?”

Keith grins. “That sounds good.”

“And you?”

“Take more chances,” Keith says.

Their eyes meet, and Shiro feels struck dumb. Possibility floats there just on the edges like a gentle snow.

“Sixty seconds!” Someone to their left shouts.

Shiro turns to see the countdown on the holoscreen. Keith beside him downs his glass of champagne.

The minute goes fast, and it occurs to him as they near midnight that there’s kissing involved. It’s tradition. Around him he can see everyone is paired off with partners or friends. Next to him is Keith.

_Oh._

They didn’t talk about this.

“Ten, nine…”

Shiro looks at Keith. “Keith, can I kiss you?”

Keith blinks at him, wide eyed.

“New Years,” Shiro spits as five seconds remain.

Something on Keith’s face shifts, and not in a good way. “Oh, uh. Yeah.”

He sounds less than enthused, but then the time is up and people are shouting. Shiro doesn’t know what to do, but Keith apparently does. He leans in, taking Shiro’s glass of his hands and setting it aside, and then kissing him.

There’s quite literal fireworks, someone’s lit something and it explodes in technicolor above them, but Shiro’s whole focus is taken up by Keith’s mouth. It’s a cold-hot mix that rattles everything inside Shiro. Keith tastes of the spiced cider, and Shiro leans in, wanting more.

But then Keith is pulling back and his expression looks wounded.

“I’m sorry,” he says, voice soft among the shouts of glee and well-wishes, “I can’t do this.”

Shiro’s just barely comprehended the words before Keith is up off the bench, disappearing away into the snowy dark. The taste of him lingers, but all the warmth goes. It goes with Keith, and Shiro feels suddenly sick and sober.

He stumbles up and follows, too distracted to pay any mind to his family and friends trying to wish him a happy new year. Shiro stalks into the snow away from the fire. The cold barely touches him, his insides are already frozen.

He’s fucked up. He’s really, really fucked up. The kiss was too far, and if he hadn’t been so glazed by drinks and merriment he would have known that. He’s such a _fucking_ _idiot_.

It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dark as he hurries, but then it’s easy to spot the tracks Keith’s left, and up above a figure in a dark coat moving away. Shiro runs.

“Keith!” Foolish or not, he has to apologize. Keith’s done so much for him, and he deserves not to be disrespected in the way Shiro did.

The figure doesn’t pause, but also doesn’t take off running. Shiro’s able to catch up to him.

“Keith I’m so sorry!”

“No, Shiro it’s fine.”

“What?” Shiro walks around to try and see Keith’s face better, but the man turns away. “Keith, it’s not fine. I made you uncomfortable and I’m sorry. I wasn’t—I wasn’t thinking, I got carried away and—“

“You were just trying to keep up expectations of us,” Keith cuts him off. “And I thought it would be fine. Especially since I made the whole thing worse with the ring, I just—“

There’s a heavy sigh from Keith that sounds weary. It breaks Shiro’s heart.

“You just had a boundary and I disrespected it,” Shiro says. “I put you on the spot. I’m so sorry.”

“No!” Keith whirls to face him, anger now written all over his face. The sudden appearance is startling. “Shiro, this is about _me_ , I just can’t… I really thought I could do this whole thing.” He runs a frustrated hand through his hair. “I thought I could come and be your fake boyfriend and it wouldn’t mean anything, but— I mean _fuck_ why do you think I didn’t take the ring off Shiro?! I didn’t _forget_.”

Shiro opens his mouth, but then nothing comes out. Keith wore the ring intentionally?

“What?” He finally manages.

Keith blows out a thick cloud of breath. “I mean, I didn’t take it off last night and went to bed wearing it and then forgot this morning. But I went to bed with it because I wanted to wear it. I wanted— fuck _,_ do I have to say it? I feel like everyone in the fucking galaxy must know by now that I’m in love with you.”

Nothing has ever stunned Shiro more. It’s true that Keith said those words once during the war, but it had been so different, so fraught and said in a moment of desperation. Shiro never even let himself hope that Keith meant it like _that_.

A thousand thoughts and memories try to rise to the top of Shiro’s mind. Keith loves him. Is _in love_ with him.

“And that’s why that,” Keith goes on, gesturing back at the fire, “It was too much. Hurts too much. I’m sorry Shiro, I really wanted to be able to do this for you, I just can’t. I want—“

“I love you,” Shiro blurts. “Too. I have, for a while. I didn’t say anything because I didn’t think you…”

“You…?” Now it’s Keith’s turn to look completely shocked.

Shiro steps closer, taking Keith’s hands. They’re icy from being uncovered and away from the fire. Shiro folds them in his own.

“I love you,” he says with every earnest bit of his pounding heart.

“Oh.” Keith’s still blinking, wide-eyed and stunned. “Wow.”

“I wanted it too, all of this, but real,” Shiro says.

“I—“

Keith’s expression does something wobbly, and Shiro can stand it no more. He gathers Keith up, wrapping his arms around him. The man shutters in his hold, but his arms go around Shiro in return. They hug each other fiercely.

“Does this make us both idiots?” Keith asks, muffled against Shiro’s coat.

It startles a laugh from Shiro. “I think that’s fair.”

There’s a beat of silence, and then from Keith a soft _wow_.

“I really thought you might already know,” Shiro says. “I’m hardly subtle about how much I like you around.”

“You like plenty of people around.”

“None like you,” Shiro says. “No one is ever like you.”

Keith pulls back enough to see his face. He looks beautiful in the low light, done in hard shadows and luminescent eyes.

“So does this mean we aren’t actually lying to your parents anymore?” Keith asks.

And isn’t that a thought. One Shiro’s never truly dared to dream. It feels surreal here surrounded by snow, and it’s only Keith still in his arms that allows Shiro to believe it’s real.

“Well,” Shiro says, “And I hope you don’t take offense to this, but we might want to start with dating and not skip right to engagement.”

Keith snorts and drops his head onto Shiro’s shoulder.

“Deal. I want a proper proposal anyway.”

At that Shiro’s heart trips over itself. Proposal. Marriage.

_With Keith._

It’s better than a dream.

“Can I kiss you?”

Keith lifts his head, meeting his eyes. “Only if you mean it. No cover story or New Years tradition.”

“Cross my heart,” Shiro says.

He tilts his head and kisses Keith.

This one knocks the New Years kiss out. Shiro pulls him in and Keith comes, soft and warm and half smiling against his lips. They kiss once, twice, then Shiro loses count. He loses everything in Keith. It’s wonderful.

They part eventually to breathe hot clouds of vapor between them. Shiro can’t see him this close, but he can feel the pull of his smile from where Shiro’s thumb is on his cheek. Shiro feels effervescent with what they’ve done, with all the future ahead of them.

“Much better,” Keith says, a bit cheeky.

“I agree,” Shiro says.

There’s another kiss, then another. The cold is slowly creeping deeper into Shiro’s bones, but he feels warm from inside, like a stalwart flame has taken up residence inside his chest.

“Should we… go back?” _To the party_ , Keith means.

“Mmm,” Shiro’s buzz from the cider is long gone, but he feels more than a little drunk on the kissing. “I think they’ll be fine without us. Cabin?”

Keith kisses him in answer.

They stumble back to the cabin, kicking up snow and laughing when they almost trip and fall. There’s still a low fire in the hearth, warm enough that Shiro doesn’t stop to tend it. They kick off their shoes, toss their jackets, and when they fall into bed this time it’s in a purposeful tangle.

##

New Year’s Day is a late start. It’s almost noon by the time Shiro is able to pull himself physically away from Keith long enough for them to get washed, dressed, and over to his parents for breakfast. He would have dawdled longer in bed with Keith, but then he’d heard the man’s stomach rumble and that had been that.

After the evening’s activities they are definitely due a hardy meal.

“Good morning, or afternoon,” Shiro’s dad greets them just inside the door.

“Where’s Mom?” Shiro asks as they take off their coats and hang them up. Kosmo strides right to his doggy bed in front of the fire and plops down.

“Down for the count, she’ll be out shortly I’m sure. Hungry?”

They nod and take seats at the table. Breakfast smells amazing.

Keith’s hand, when it reaches for the knife to cut into the French toast, is wearing the ring. It fills Shiro up with tenderness to see it this time. They may not be actually engaged, but a lot of promises and vows were made in the early hours of the day, and Shiro is happy to take it slow in the meantime. He’s happy to fantasize about what’s to come, now that he and Keith are together.

When they go home later today, Shiro will take the ring back and get it resized for the future. He’ll think about a time and place to make an honest man out of Keith.

For now they have breakfast and take to lazily lounging in the living room in front of the fire. Kosmo puts himself at their feet, baring his belly for scratches. Eventually when his mom comes shambling out looking worse for wear, they will recount their evening and thank his parents for hosting. His mom will kiss him and call hm Hoshi, and she’ll kiss Keith and welcome him once again to the family. This time it will be real, Keith’s smile and blush completely real.

And then Shiro will drive Keith and Kosmo back to the airport and they’ll fly home. Together.

**Author's Note:**

> Warm fuzzies all around. Happy Sheithmark!


End file.
